Create Office 2010 configurations for different groups of users

Administrators can create unique configurations of Microsoft Office 2010 and customize them for each group of users by using either of two methods.

The first method uses the Office Customization Tool (OCT) to create a Setup customization .msp file for each group. You then use the command line to run Setup and specify the customization .msp file.

The second method uses the Config.xml file and a Setup customization .msp file to customize the installation, and uses a separate installation folder that contains the Setup program and all the customization files for the installation. You then run Setup from that separate installation folder.

In Office 2010, two architecture-specific versions of the OCT are available: one for 32-bit Office 2010 and one for 64-bit Office 2010. The 64-bit version of the OCT supports 64-bit client editions of Office 2010, and provides the same user interface, capabilities, and configurable settings as the 32-bit version. You use the same command to run the 32-bit or 64-bit version of the OCT. For instance, if you want to run the 32-bit OCT, run the setup.exe /admin command line from the x86 (32-bit) folder as shown in the following example: \\server\share\Office14\x86\setup.exe /admin. To run the 64-bit OCT, run the setup.exe /admin command line from the x64 (64-bit) folder. For more information about 64-bit Office 2010, see 64-bit editions of Office 2010.

Typically, the first step in a corporate deployment of Office 2010 is to create a network installation point. You do this by copying all the source files from your Office CD to a shared location on the network. Users run Setup from the network installation point, or you use the installation point as a starting place to create a hard-disk image or a custom CD or to distribute Office by using a deployment management tool such as Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager. For more information, see Create a network installation point for Office 2010.

The method described in this section uses the OCT to create a unique Setup customization file (.msp file) for each group. Then you install Office for the users by specifying the customization file on the Setup command line.

In the root of the network installation point, create a folder for your Setup customization files.

Note

Do not put your customization files in the Updates folder. Setup automatically applies customization files that it finds in this folder during installation. Instead, you direct Setup to use only the customization file that you specify on the command line, as described in step 5.

Start the OCT by running Setup from the network installation point. Specify the /admin command-line option; for example, \\server\share\setup.exe /admin. For more information, see Office Customization Tool in Office 2010.

Make the customizations that you want to use for the first group of users.

On the File menu, click Save.

Specify a unique name for the Setup customization file. Save the file in the folder that you created.

Repeat the process to create a unique Setup customization file for each group of users.

Run Setup for the users within each group. Specify the appropriate Setup customization file by using the /adminfile command-line option. For example, to install Office for users in the Accounting department, run \\server\share\setup.exe /adminfile \\server\share\custom\accounting.msp. For more information, see Run Setup from a network installation point.

The method described in this section uses the Config.xml file and a Setup customization .msp file to create customizations for each group of users. It also uses a separate installation folder from the primary network installation point to store Setup.exe, Config.xml, Osetup.dll, and the Setup customization .msp files. The remaining necessary installation files will be contained in the primary network installation folder for Office 2010. You run (or have users run) Setup from that separate installation folder.

The primary difference between the method described in this section and the preceding one is the use of the separate installation folder. The benefit of a separate installation folder for a group of users is that you (or the users in that group) can run Setup from that separate installation location and receive the customized configuration of the group without having to use complex commands and network paths with Setup.exe.

To create and install a custom configuration for a group of users by using a separate installation folder

Create a folder that is separate from the primary network installation folder for Office 2010. For example, GroupCustomOfficeInstallFolder.

Create a copy of Setup.exe, Config.xml, and Osetup.dll in the new folder. These files are in the primary network installation folder.

Setup.exe is located at the root of the folder. The Config.xml file and Osetup.dll are stored in the core product folder: core_product_folder_name.WW folder; for example, ProPlus.WW.

Using a text editor, open Config.xml and do the following:

Edit the Location attribute in the DistributionPoint element to get the Office 2010 installation files from the primary network installation folder, as shown in the following example. For information about Config.xml, see Config.xml file in Office 2010.

If you used the OCT to create one or more Setup customization files (.msp files), edit the CheckForSUpdates and SUpdateLocation attributes in the SetupUpdates element in Config.xml as shown in the following example to enable Setup to find Setup customization files in the new folder. (By default, Setup looks for Setup customization files in the Updates folder, and then runs them in alphabetical order if there is more than one.)